Monday, January 30, 2017

The Prince George’s County
Fire/Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Department is pleased to announce that Retired Deputy Fire Chief Tyrone Wells and Assistant Fire Chief Darren O. Ware were recognized as The Knights of Columbus “Career Fire Fighter of the Year."

The award presentation was made on Saturday, January 28th, at the Knights of Columbus Sacred Heart Council No. 2577 in Bowie, Maryland. Tyrone Wells was unable to attend the event due to previous commitments. Darren Ware was well represented with members of his family and co-workers including Chief Deputy Benjamin Barksdale.

Ware and Wells were selected for their actions in saving the life of a female that occupied a burning vehicle. The following account was read while making the award presentation.

Wednesday,
April 20, 2016, was challenging from its onset—first and foremost because the
Prince George’s County Fire/ EMS Department was conducting funeral services for
one of its members killed in the line of duty.Secondly, Assistant Fire Chief Ware was tasked with coordinating mutual
aid resources and ensuring that personnel who don’t work in our system or
typically work together would be able to do so safely and efficiently.Then, upon concluding his shift and en route
home, he noticed smoke on the road ahead of him and suspected it was a vehicle
fire.

As
Chief Ware neared the incident, his suspicion of a vehicle fire was
confirmed.He was surprised to discover that
an adult female driver was inside.He
quickly radioed Public Safety Communications for resources, after which he
attempted to remove the victim from the vehicle.His attempt was unsuccessful, as all four
doors were locked; and the woman was unresponsive to his instruction to unlock
her door.With the fire beneath the
vehicle growing larger and progressing into the free burning phase, Chief Ware
realized the increasing urgency of the situation.He hurriedly returned to his vehicle and
surveyed the surrounding area, hoping to find something that could be used to
gain entry into the vehicle.Everything
was happening so fast; yet, it seemed like eternity in the face of the
life-threatening situation confronting the victim.

Retired Deputy Fire Chief Tyrone Wells, also returning from the funeral and traveling
along the same route as Ware, spied the incident and stopped to provide
assistance.A male bystander retrieved a
construction tool from his vehicle, to assist with a second attempt to access
the vehicle.Forcible entry was in
progress when the victim inadvertently stepped on the gas pedal, driving the
vehicle down the slope off the shoulder of the road.The fire was now at a difficult angle with
extension into the engine compartment, which posed greater peril in an already
challenging situation.Time was of the
essence, and it was imperative to affect this rescue immediately to prevent a
tragic outcome.Wells and Ware managed to get down the slope and access the passenger side of the
vehicle.The new position of the vehicle
had rendered the driver’s side inaccessible.

Deputy Chief Wells used the construction
tool to break the passenger side window, at which time Chief Ware reached
inside the vehicle and manually unlocked the door.Smoke was rapidly filling the vehicle, and
the engine compartment was fully involved.It was just a matter of time before fire reached the passenger
compartment.He reached over the front
passenger seat accessed the unresponsive victim and lifted her from the
driver’s seat to the passenger side of the car.This was by no means easy, but it was the only option.

After successfully rescuing the
patient from the passenger side, Chief Ware carried her up the hill and across
the street.Barrier protection had not yet
been established; but, traffic had fortunately stopped.Other Fire/EMS personnel returning from the
funeral had arrived by then, and the patient was placed in their care for
further medical evaluation and treatment.

Chief Ware immediately repositioned
his vehicle to use as barrier protection.Within moments following the rescue, the woman’s vehicle was fully
involved.An engine company and ALS unit
from a nearby fire station arrived on the scene a couple of minutes later.The fire was extinguished, and the patient
was transported to a hospital.Chief
Ware then made radio notifications and terminated command per Departmental
protocols.

Congratulations to Darren Ware and Tyrone Wells on this well-deserved recognition!!!

LODD April 15, 2016

Fire Fighter/Medic Lieutenant John "Skillet" Ulmschneider

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Tragically firefighters will find pets that have been injured in home fires. Sometimes owners are not availiable to bring their pet to a emergency vet or may not have the resources to afford medical care. The Prince George's County Fire/EMS Department and the Anne Arundel County SPCA have teamed up and created a fund whereas medical care for the pet would be covered in part or in full.
Please consider donating today. Please designate your donation to the Sparky Fire Fund.
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